Time and Calendar
Time keeps on ticking: it has ever since the beginning and will until everything ceases as the last star dies. While time itself remains constant, flowing and unchanging, the ways of keeping track of it differ greatly from place to place. Calendars on Athas mostly emerged as a way of keeping track of harvests and seasons, to mark special days and eventually as a way for all common people to have the same frame of reference when referring to time, context and chronology. Listed below are the most common ways of keeping track of time in the world of Athas: 'Common Reckoning (CR)' Common Reckoning, abbreviated "CR". Time travels sixty seconds to one minute, sixty minutes to one hour, twenty-four hours to one day, seven days to one week, fifty-two weeks to one year; there are 365 days in a year (or 366 days every four years, in what is known as a "Leap Year"). Years are marked since the beginning of the War of Wood and Stone, which was the year 1 CR. The world of Athas, regardless of culture or race, has largely adopted this calendar. Even races who operate little with other cultures, such as the Wood Elves, know and fluently understand this calendar. In fact, it is so wide-spread in its use that most races use IT as opposed to their cultural calendars. Only the most primitive tribes and most isolated cultures do not know and/or use this calendar. 'Days of the Week' There are seven days in one week. To keep everything in order, each day has a name and general rules of social etiquette that most follow (though it is not law, simply custom). They are: '--Moonday:' Work; religions that hold services at night as Ehlonna, Oliddamara and Nerull '--Toliday:' Work '--Wealday:' Work '--Oathday:' Work; pacts are signed, oaths are sworn, most common day for weddings and trials '--Fireday:' Work '--Starday:' Work '--Sunday:' Rest; religions that hold services in the day [Such as Pelor, Heironeous and Yondalla) 'Months' There are twelve months of Athas (which correspond to our own Earth calendar), with the new year starting shortly after the winter solstice. The name is etymologically tied to one of the gods. Natives of Athas see the gods reflected in the world around them, and this holds true with the seasons, so the names reflect this. Thus, Yondas (after the goddess Yondalla) is a time of budding life, Neras is seen as the death of the old year. The months are: '--Cuthas:' Midwinter (14 Cuthas); Labor Day (27 Cuthas); Breadgiving (30 Cuthas) '--Oliddas:' Festival of Masks (5 Oliddas); Lover's Day (14 Oliddas); Feast of the Doubling Dare (20 Oliddas); Taste of a Hundred Years (28 Oliddas) '--Yondas:' Spring Equinox; Hearthsday (16 Yondas) '--Lonnas:' Greengrass (05 Lonnas) '--Fharas:' Day of Miles (11 Fharas); Milestone Day (31 Fharas) '--Pelas:' Feast of Reldora (02 Pelas); Midsummer Day (15 Pelas) '--Heiras:' Justday (10 Heiras); Valormight (28 Heiras) '--Boccas:' The Knowing (12 Boccas); Celestial Conjunctions (26 Boccas) '--Gruumas:' Life Day (09 Gruumas) '--Erythas:' Hallow's Eve (31 Erythas) '--Hextas:' Thanksgiving (27 Hextas) '--Neras:' Day of Rememberence (10 Neras); Kalesmas (25 Neras) When specifying a date, it is formatted day-month-year. Thus, on the 25th of Gruumas of the current year, the date would be formatted 25 Gruumas 4707. The current year in Common Reckoning is: 4707 CR 'Dwarven Reckoning (DR)' The Dwarves have their own calendar, which they have kept since they first defeated the Foromians. Their Year 1 DR (Dwarven Reckoning) is marked from the day they first reached the open air, known as "Durin's Day" and it marks the new year for their people, known as Gruumas 21 by Common Reckoning. Their calendar is comprised of twelve moon cycles, but they do not keep month names. Instead, they number their months. Their form of time-keeping is formatted as follows: day/month/year. Thus, as of Gruumas 22, 4707 CR, the date on the Dwarven calendar is 02 / 01 / 6010 DR. Few dwarves use this calendar as a standard, however, and many dwarf Holds have adopted Common Reckoning as their official. However, birth records, marriages are kept in both traditional and common reckoning and temples to Moradin operate strictly by Dwarven Reckoning. Dwarves do not typically have names for the days of the week, instead paying attention to the day's number in a given month. However, modern Dwarves operate using the day names used in Common Reckoning and only the oldest and staunchest traditionalists do not use the common day names. The current year in Dwarf Reckoning is: 6010 DR 'Elven Calander (EC)' The elves do have a sort of rudimentary system of keeping time, split into four Endiens (or seasons), known as: '--Tuileere Spring:' 91 '--Laire Summer:' 91 '--Yaavie Autumn:' 91 '--Hesin Winter:' 91 While all elves are familiar with these timekeeping methods, it is usually reserved for birthdays within a community and is the official time-keeping method used by the church of Correlon Larethian. Category:Lore